Larson Already Preparing For 2024 Indy 500
Photo by Chris Jones, Penske Entertainment
The 107th Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge is still over a week away. But for some, the focus is already on the 108th running next year.
2021 NASCAR Cup Series champion Kyle Larson is expected to make his long awaited Indy 500 debut in 2024 in a partnership with Hendrick Motorsports and Arrow McLaren.
No stranger to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, or racing in central Indiana, Larson paid a visit to the track on Thursday in anticipation of running in next year’s 500.
“Yeah, it's obviously very exciting. It's been something that I've wanted to do for a very long time. I wanted to be patient and kind of wait for the timing to feel right. It feels right. Having Hendrick Motorsports be extremely supportive of it, supporting the efforts with Arrow McLaren, it's something that I'm extremely excited about.
“To have Rick (Hendrick) and Jeff Gordon involved. Jeff kind of told me that I get to live out a dream of his. That's really special also to me.
“I've obviously come here a lot in a stock car. I lived in the area for a couple years. So this place for a long time felt like home or a second home to me.
“In my opinion, this is the biggest race in the world, so you want to be a part of the big ones. Hopefully someday be a winner of a big event.
“Look forward to it. Happy to be here today. Look forward to kind of taking in as much knowledge as I possibly can in a single day, just trying to better prepare myself for whenever I get behind the wheel.”
“In my opinion, this is the biggest race in the world, so you want to be a part of the big ones. Hopefully someday be a winner of a big event.”
Also on hand for the day was Jeff Gordon, now vice chairman of Hendrick Motorsports.
“We are excited to be here and be a part of this. It's been a lot of fun working with Arrow McLaren, Zak Brown, Gavin Ward, his whole team to pull this off.
“I'm kind of glad that Kyle said, This is something I'd really like to do one day. Do you think this is something that Mr. Hendrick and Hendrick Cars would want to support?
“We're happy that that's all going to come true in 2024.
“I think for today, it's such a different world, right? This car. I think as a driver, driving a race car is sort of natural of what you need to go fast, to compete. But you're talking about Indianapolis at 230-plus miles per hour, what it takes to get comfortable, what kind of language there is for a driver of the types of things that they're talking about versus a stock car or a sprint car.
“For us, I think on the Hendrick Motorsports side, it's building this relationship with Arrow McLaren so that next year we can do everything we can to maximize its full potential, get Kyle everything he needs, to get Arrow McLaren everything they need, to make sure that this effort goes as smooth as possible and gives them the best opportunity to get a great result.”
Photo by Chris Jones, Penske Entertainment
For Arrow McLaren racing director, Gavin Ward, the day was a great opportunity to begin assimilating Larson into the ways of how INDYCAR goes about its business at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
“Yeah, what better fit for a team like McLaren that's taken to racing in a lot of different forms to have a driver like Kyle who has shown such versatility.
“I think just for the team to build this relationship with Hendrick Motorsports, Hendrick Cars, is great. I think one of the best racing teams in the world, racing organizations in the world. Fun to kind of get that together.
“Yeah, having this little bit of time to try to introduce Indianapolis Motor Speedway racing with INDYCAR to Kyle, get ahead of it here and show him a bit how we work, what's involved. I think it's a great opportunity.”
While he has yet to get on track in an Indycar, Larson and the team have already begun preparations for next year.
“I went to their race shop a couple weeks ago to get the first initial kind of seat insert formed to me. Still have to finish that whole process.
“They gave me a big packet of stuff to look at, notes and dash displays, emailed me some onboard footage. I watched all of that. Kind of got a sense of just nice to see the onboard, see shifting, adjusting, all the cockpit adjustable things that they have, just seeing how the flow of the race kind of goes, how they position themselves behind people in traffic, stuff like that. Restart procedures, all of that. Pit stops, pulling into your pit sign, all of that.
“But I don't know when I'm testing yet. I don't want to, like, pick people's brains yet, other drivers' brains too early on, then have to go to them in a few months and ask the same questions over again. I want to wait a little bit to pick their brains some. I definitely want to talk to guys who are familiar with stock cars and INDYCARs, Jimmie (Johnson), Kurt (Busch), guys who have done this more recently.
“Again, I don't want to do it too early yet and get on their nerves when I go to ask them again later on.”
“I sure as heck right now don’t want to drive into turn one at 238 miles, whatever they’re running, but Kyle does. Kyle is capable of it.”
As a driver who has proven he can win in anything with four wheels, Larson knows preparing for racing an Indycar will be different from anything else he’s done.
“Yeah, I mean, I would say everything that I race is much more simple than an INDYCAR. The only kind of thing I feel like that I have to judge off of that was new to me, not overwhelming but just stressful, was when I did the Rolex for the few years that we did. Obviously different cars, but a lot more total different kind of foreign style racing to me, which I feel like INDYCAR stuff would be a little bit that way, with just race procedure stuff, the cockpits are way more in-depth than what I'm used to in anything that I race.
“In a stock car, I'm worried about turning on brake fans. If I don't, it's really not a big deal. Sprint car I have a wing valve. Late models nothing. Midgets nothing. In an INDYCAR, you got I don't even know. You could probably tell me everything. You have boost, weight jackers, bars, all sorts of stuff that I want to be ready for and know when they tell me to do this or do that, I can be quick to it, not hesitate and give up something that might be crucial for the end of the race.
“As far as the driving, the driving part of it I think, hopefully that all will come naturally. I don't really know. I don't have any experience yet to even have an opinion on what it could relate to or if it is totally just different than anything I've been in.
“I feel like our NASCAR racing has trended a little bit closer to INDYCAR style of strategy, with fuel savings, stuff like that. I think I have more experience now than I would have had three years ago on that side of things.
“There's going to be a lot to soak in over the next year, and I look forward to the challenge. I love racing new vehicles to challenge myself and learn something new. I feel like ultimately it makes me a better race car driver.
“I think no matter the result throughout this whole experience, I think I'm going to become a better race car driver from it. So I'm excited about all that.”
Photo by Chris Jones, Penske Entertainment
While Gordon won NASCAR’s Brickyard 400 five times, he never got the chance to run the Indy 500. But he’s excited for the opportunity Larson has.
“Like Kyle said, it's true, I did say to him he's going to be able to live out a dream of mine. I go back to the mid to late '80s when I was living here in Indiana, raced all around here. Every race car driver's dream, if you race around Indianapolis, is to get here, to compete at this facility.
“I watched guys like Rich Vogler, a few other competitors I raced with, come over here and do that. Certainly it was on my radar. But NASCAR came calling. Once that happened, I kind of shifted my focus to that.
“I don't know if really the right opportunity or it ever became serious enough after that to become a reality. So to me, this is equally as exciting because, one, I sure as heck right now don't want to drive into turn one at 238 miles, whatever they're running, but Kyle does. Kyle is capable of it.
“The fact that Rick (Hendrick) has never been to the Indy 500, we're going to go to Le Mans this year, next year he's going to come to the Indy 500, that's extremely exciting for our organization, as well as the things we can learn from Arrow McLaren in what they do here to compete for this event. I think there's crossover we can learn from one another.
“Super excited. Excited for Kyle. As well as he has the ability. When he has the equipment and the resources, the people surrounding him, he has the ability to go do extraordinary things. We've seen him do it in other cars. I have no doubt that he'll be able to do that in the Indy 500 next year, as well.”
With its invovlement in NASCAR’s Garage 56 program at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, and its 2024 association with Arrow McLaren at the 500, Hendrick Motorsports has expanded its racing footprint. But Gordon cautions more involvement in the NTT INDYCAR SERIES as a team or partnership isn’t something on the horizon.
“I know what Rick's answer would be if he was sitting here. It would be an absolute no.
“He loves racing. He loves cars. When he comes here next year, he might change his mind a little bit. NASCAR is always going to be our primary focus, where our history, our legacy lies.
“I will say that if you want to run a good business, you have to diversify yourself. We've seen ourselves get into GM defense manufacturing, we're seeing ourselves go to Le Mans. We've dabbled a little bit in IMSA. We have a great relationship with Chevrolet and our friends at GM.
“If there's something that makes sense for us as a company, as Hendrick Motorsports, then we're certainly going to look at it, look at whether or not it makes sense for us or not.”
Getting the chance to run the Indy 500 and NASCAR’s Coke 600 on the same day next year is something few racers have had. Larson says its a humbling opportunity.
“It is. It is a lot. Growing up with dreams -- I don't even know what my dreams were racing in California. I think I would have been happy to make a living as a race car driver, whether that be on the local level or national level like I am now.
“Yeah, to be able to accomplish things I've accomplished in the relatively short career I guess you want to call it, I'm only 30 currently, hopefully I have a long ways to go. All the opportunities I've had to this point, being with Rick Hendrick and Jeff Gordon, everything they've been able to do for me the last few years has been spectacular.
“I think, too, being able to compete in this event, I think it really more than anybody makes my dad really proud. That's something that's special to me. There's definitely no bigger race to him than Indy 500. I know he's wanted me to do it for a very long time. It's going to be really special to see him kind of see me during driver introductions and stuff like that.
“He's a crier, so he'll probably not even be able to watch the race because he'll have tears in his eyes the whole time. That's the thing that's most special to me at this point, knowing I'm in the Indy 500 is making him proud.”
But before we look too far ahead, there’s the matter of the 107th running of the Indianapolis 500 on May 28th.